San Francisco Offers To Buy Troubled Haight-Ashbury McDonald’s

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — The City of San Francisco has offered to buy a McDonald’s located in the city’s Haight-Ashbury District, but it’s not getting into the burger business.

City officials want to but it, to shut it down and clean up crime in the neighborhood.

Jennifer Garcia is among the residents worried about crime near the McDonald’s. She has lived in the neighborhood for about a year and walks by the fast-food restaurant every day.

“I think those that walk through kind of avoid this area a little bit or don’t really know you shouldn’t really walk through the alley way behind McDonald’s,” she told KPIX 5.

City Supervisor London Breed agrees and came up with the plan to buy the building, tear it down and redevelop the corner.

“That’s why I’ve been pushing so hard to purchase this property is because of the complaints coming from them (local residents),” he said. “It’s the frustration they have because of what they experience walking in their neighborhoods. They are sick and tired of it.”

Breed claims police have responded to more than 1,000 911 calls to the McDonald’s within the past three years — including a shooting last Thursday at 2:30 p.m. There have been other calls for stabbings, assaults and illegal drug use.

“It’s just elevated to the point that it’s not sustainable,” he said. “This sadly is an attraction for a lot of problems and a lot of crime.”

Breed said undesirable activity has been common in the neighborhood.

“Folks just kind of hanging out, meandering around, kind of loitering, maybe sleeping on the streets is not abnormal for this area,” Breed said.

McDonald’s has released a statement saying they received a letter from the city asking about purchasing the property and are reviewing it.